A Quick Look
The SUNY Oneonta baseball team dropped a non-conference doubleheader to Rutgers-Camden to open the 2020 season Sunday afternoon at Rider University. The Red Dragons came up short the first game 6-5 in eight innings before falling in the nightcap 9-4.

The Inside Story
In the first game, Oneonta jumped out to an early 1-0 lead in the top of the first on a James Zupo (Massapequa/Massapequa) RBI single through the right side, scoring Ryan McGrane (Plainedge/Plainedge). Oneonta held the lead until Rutgers-Camden plated two runs in the bottom of the fourth.

Oneonta took the lead back in the top of the fifth when they scored three runs. The Red Dragons scored their first run of the inning when Rutgers misplayed a Jonathan Lezette (Saugerties/Saugerties) bunt, allowing Patrick McGee (Mahopac/Mahopac) to score the tying run. Oneonta took the lead on a John Zinko (Wallkill/Wallkill) sacrifice fly, scoring Sean McGlynn (New Hartford/New Hartford) from third. James Zupo (Massapequa/Massapequa) capped off the inning with an RBI single to left, upping the Oneonta lead to 4-2.

The Raptors would rally for three runs on three hits and a pair of errors in the bottom of the sixth to take a 5-4 advantage. Down to their final out in the top of the seventh, John Zinko (Wallkill/Wallkill) delivered a game-tying RBI single to center.

The Raptorss would eventually walk off with the win after an Oneonta fielding error in the bottom of the eighth.

Michael Losak (Merrick/Sanford H. Calhoun) suffered the loss after allowing one run on one hit in two innings of relief. Starter Steven Gerringer (LaGrangeville/Arlington) struck out five while giving up three hits and two runs in four innings.

In the nightcap, Oneonta fell into an early hole after allowing the Raptors to score four runs on four hits in the bottom of the first.

The Red Dragons cut the deficit in half in the top of the second. Matthew McAllister (Vestal/Vestal) scored the first run when he scampered home from third on a wild pitch. The second run of the inning came on an RBI triple off the bat of Ryan McGrane (Plainedge/Plainedge) to make the score 4-2.

After Rutgers-Camden added a run in the bottom of the second. The score stayed the same until Oneonta got one back on a fielding error, allowing Dominic Lamonica (Stony Brook/Ward Melville) to score. Oneonta would pull within one in the top of the sixth on a Sean McGlynn (New Hartford/New Hartford) sacrifice fly, but their excitement was short lived as Rutgers-Camden tallied four runs in the bottom of the inning to make the score 9-4.

Zachary Vavasour (Saratoga Springs/Saratoga Springs) kept Oneonta in the game after allowing just one run in fourth and third innings of relief.

Just the stats
James Zupo (Massapequa/Massapequa) paced the Oneonta with four hits and a pair of RBI. John Zinko (Wallkill/Wallkill), Matthew McAllister (Vestal/Vestal), Sean McGlynn (New Hartford/New Hartford) and Ryan McGrane (Plainedge/Plainedge) had three hits apiece.

What's Next
The Red Dragons return to action on Wednesday, March 4th when they host SUNY Cobleskill at newly renovated Red Dragon Baseball Field at 3:00pm.